Door operating mechanism



March 28, 1950 N. J. GUlMONT DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM 2 Sheet eet 1 Filed N ov 6, 1944 INVENTOR ZZAJ/ 1 March 28, 1950 N. J. GUIMONT DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed NOV, 6, 1944 INVENTOR.

Patented Mar. 28, 1950 7' V: UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE a 2 2,501,s9 7 V t DOOR OPERATING' MECHANISM Nelson J (iuimont; Chicago lllfl Application November 6, I94 4, Serial No. 562,241 I The present invention relates to a mechanism for doors of an enclosure such as a garage building whereby the doors may be actuated to either open or closed position.

Heretofore the doors of buildings, particularly doors of garages, have been provided with various operating mechanisms or devices for opening or closing the doors without manual effort. Generally such arrangements have employed relatively expensive and complicated electrical devices. There have been no simple mechanisms available for garage doors which would either automatically or semi-automatically open or close the doors. It would be highly desirable to provide a simple economical mechanical device for a garage door which would permit the automobile driver to drive out of the garage, and subsequently after a predetermined time interval the garage doors would close automatically.

In accordance with the present invention this may be accomplished by providing a relatively simple mechanical device in which sufiicient energy is stored when the doors are opened so that this energy controlled by a time delay mechanism may be used for closing the doors after a predetermined time interval. In one embodiment the present invention is applied to dual or double doors of a garage although the invention is equally applicable to other types of door structures such as an overhead door.

It, therefore, is'an object of the present invention to provide an improved mechanism for doors which can be latched in either of two positions to hold the doors either opened or closed.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved door controlling mechanlsm for retaining the door in either of two posi tions and which will automatically close the door after a predetermined time interval.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved mechanism interconnecting double doors of an enclosure such as a garagewhich is readily adapted to accommodate diifrent size doors.

Other and further objects of the present invention subsequently will become apparent by reference to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein Figure 1 is a perspective view of the principal components of the mechanism embodying the present invention in the position when the doors are closed;

the mechanism shown in Figure 1 under the same. conditions; i Figure 3 is a partial top view of the mechanism shown in Figure 1; i

Figure 4 is a perspective view illustrating the operation of the mechanism when the doors are open; r

Figure 5 is a cross sectional view across a portion of the mechanism shown in Figure 1 as seen in the direction of the arrows along the'line 5-5; 1 a Figure 6 is an enlarged perspective View of a certain portion of the mechanism illustrating the operation just prior to the time that the mechanism' is to close the doors; Figure '7' shows an attachment element for'the doors; and l Figure 8 is a cross sectional view showing the manner in which the attachment element in Figure 7 is interconnected with a door. 1

Reference may now be had to Figures 1, 2, and 3 which show the invention applied to abuilding structurehaving dual doors I0 and [2 shown in closed position in Figure 1. As is customary immediately above the doors l0 and I2 there is provided a beam M which may form a portionof the door frame. At the adjacent edges of the doors l0 and [2 there is located perpendicular to the beam [4 a horizontal beam l6 which supports the mechanism interconnecting the doors I0 and i2. This mechanism includes a rail I8 which may be of any suitable form and in one simple embodiment as is apparent in Figure 5 may comprise a flat plate secured by screws 20 to the beam [6. It, ofcourse, will be appreciated that the member .18 may be of some-other suitable configuration or structure as for examplean inverted T beam suitably supported-in the same general relation relative to the doors. The rail I8 is provided with a sliding carriage 22 which is connected to a pair of arms 24 and 26 each of which is in turn connected by similar members 28 and 30 to the doors l0 and I2 respectively. The slidingcarriage 22 as is apparent from the drawings may comprisea member having a generally U -shaped structure with fingers or sides engaging the upper surface of the rail l8. Each of the arms24 and 26 is pivotally connected to themember 22 as is apparent from Figure 2. Similarly each of the members 28 and His pivotallyconnected to its associated arm Hand 25. -The carriage 22 isprovided with a depending arm32 which is engaged by one end of an ener storage member 34 whichrmay comprise asprin-g theotherend f whic is, secu d oward-t erre o the aresse.

At the forward end of the carriage 22 there is provided an upstanding lug or arm 36 which in the position shown in Figures 1, 2, and 3 is in engagement with the dependent extremity of a rod 38 suitably supported by guide members 40 and 42 secured to one side of the beam I6.

Adjacent the end of the rail I8 there is provided a latching member 44 having an actuating arm 46, a second actuating arm 48, a strike 58 and a hook 52 arranged at approximately equal angular intervals of the pivot of the member 44. The arm 46 may be provided with a cord 53 so that the member 44 may be actuated manually whenever desired. The hook 52 of the member 44 is adapted to engage the upstanding lug or arm 36 of the carriage 22 when the doors l and I2 have been moved outwardly.

The rod 38 at its other extremity is connected to a time delay mechanism 54 which may be in the form of a simple screen door check having a piston 56 and an energy storage coil spring 58. Any suitable type of energy storage means providing the proper time delay may be used in place of the mechanism shown in the drawing. At an intermediate point the rod 38 is provided with a collar 60 shown in greater detail in Figure 6. The collar 66 has two portions 62 and 64 for engagement with the arm 48 of the member 44 and with the latching portion of another arm mounted horizontally above the beam IS. A projecting portion 62 of the collar 60 which preferably is arranged so as to be adjustably positioned on the rod 38, is adapted to engage the arm 48. The other projecting portion 64 of the collar 68 is adapted to engage the hook 86 of an actuating member 68 pivotally supported on the top of the beam l6. The member 68 is provided with a strike and with an actuating arm 12. The actuating arm 12 has a cord or rope 18 attached to the end thereof and the cord passes over a suitable pulley 80 positioned on the other side of the beam l6.

The members 28 and 38 shown in Figures 1 and 4 are disclosed with greater clarity in Figures 7 and 8 wherein only one member 28 has been shown. The ends of the member 28 are threaded and an eyelet 82 is formed at theapex of the angle between the two leg portions of the member 28. Each of the threaded portions 84 and 86 is mounted on the door in the manner shown in Figure 8 wherein the one leg of the member 28 is provided with a lock nut 88 and a cap nut 98 having a head adapted to engage the outer surface of the door l0. When the lock nut 88 is loose the head 90 may be adjusted so as to properly position the member 28 and its eyelet 82 relative to the arm 24 so that the mechanism will move the door [0 to its proper position in open or closed condition. When this adjustment has been obtained by the member 96, the lock nut 88 is tightened to retain the adjustment.

The operation of the mechanism will become apparent by assuming that the apparatus is in the condition shown in Figure 1 where the doors in and i2 are closed. In order to open the doors Ill and I2, it is necessary to push against one of the doors whereupon the carriage 22 will be moved forwardly along the rail I8 until the forward edge 92 of the carriage 22 as seen in Figure 6 engages the strike 58 of the member 44 so as to cause the hook 52 to be moved in back of the upstanding lug 36 on the carriage 22. The hook 52 of the member 44 therefore retains the spring or energy storage member in extended condition until released. If it is desired to have the doors close immediately it is only necessary to grasp the rope 53 and to pull downwardly on the lever 46 so as to raise the catch 52 to permit the upstanding lug 36 of the carriage 22 to escape so that the carriage 22 will be drawn rearwardly by the energy stored in the spring 34. The doors I!) and I2 thereupon will again be closed as shown in Figure 1.

It may now, however, be assumed that the doors l0 and I2 have been opened and that the hook 52 of the member 44 is retaining by engagement with the member 36 the carriage 22 in its forward position. The automobile owner thereupon may enter the automobile and start the motor. Just prior to shifting gears and engaging the clutch, the operator may reach outside of the car and grasp the rope 18 to pull upon the lever 12 which will disengage the hook 66 from the upstanding lug 64 on the collar 60 which is mounted on the rod 38. As is apparent from Figure 2 the rod 38 has been moved rearwardly at the time that the carriage 22 was at it rear position so that the collar 68 is retained by the member 68. When, however, the lever 72 is actuated, the member 88 releases the collar 68 thus permitting the spring 58 of the door check 54 to release its energy and to move the rod 38 forwardly along the beam It. The collar 60 therefore moves forwardly until it engages the lever 48. In Figure 4 the collar 60 is shown midway between the members 68 and 44 which condition occurs during the time interval required for the door check to move its piston 56 to its normal limit. While the member 68 is moving, the automobile driver drives out of the garage and leaves. Shortly thereafter the member 68 is moved to a position where the arm 62 thereof engages the lever 48 so as to bring about the disengagement of the hook 52 from the upstanding lug portion 36 of the carriage 22. This permits the spring 34 to return the carriage 22 to the position shown in Figures 1 and 2. At the time when the carriage 22 is reaching its rearmost limit of travel, the upstanding lug 36 engages the depending end of the rod 38 so as to again compress the spring 58 of the door check 54. The movement of the rod 38 by the carriage 22 causes the collar 68 to engage the strike 18 of the member 68 so as to bring the hook 66 in such position that even though the collar 60 moves slightly beyond the position shown in Figure 3, the hook 66 will prevent movement of the collar 60 forwardly of the position shown in Figure 3. The time delay device comprising the door check 54, the operation of which is adjustable by virtue of the customary adjustment means 55, therefore serves to determine the time interval between the initiation of the releasing action by actuation of the lever 12 and the time when the carriage 22 actually is released. The door check 54 also serves to cushion and retard in a decelerating manner the final portion of the movement of the carriage 22 thereby reducing and substantially obviating shock upon the doors l0 and I2 at the time when they are substantially in closed position.

From the foregoing explanation it will readily be appreciated that while for the convenience of illustration, the rope 18 has been shown in passing over but a single pulley 86, additional pulleys may be provided so as to bring this rope to the desired position in the garage adjacent the driver's side of the automobile or vehicle stored within the garage.

While it has been convenient for the purpose of disclosing the present invention to show the application of the invention to a dual door arrangement, it will readily be appreciated that the invention is readily applicable to other types of door structures such as for example an overhead door. The application of the present invention to such structures does not change the principle of operation and involves merely slight re-arrangement of the location of the assembly and possibly a modification of the link interconnecting the carriage with the door. It therefore is readily apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is susceptible of application to other types of door structures.

It furthermore will be appreciated that while a preferred embodiment has been shown in the drawings that the invention is not to be limited thereby since obviously variations may be made in the configuration of the components employed and in their location without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

This invention is hereby claimed as follows:

1. A mechanism for a door comprising a rail arranged perpendicular to the plane of the frame of the door in closed position, a carriage slidably mounted on said rail, an arm interconnecting said carriage and said door, energy storage means for urging said carriage to a predetermined position whereby the door will be in the closed position, latching means arranged adjacent said rail and adapted to engage and retain said carriage when said door is opened, manual means to unlatch said latching means whereby said energy storage means moves said carriage and said doors to the closed position without delay, a time delay mechanism including a movable arm, said arm engaging said carriage upon movement of said carriage to said predetermined position whereby to energize said time delay mechanism, holding means effective to retain said arm in the energized position, means to release said arm from said holding means whereby said arm is moved by said time delay mechanism to unlatch said latching means after a, predetermined time interval.

2. A mechanism for a door comprising a rail arranged perpendicular to the plane of the frame of the door in closed position, a carriage slidably mounted on said rail, an arm interconnecting said carriage and said door, a spring connected between a fixed point and said carriage for urging said carriage to a predetermined position whereby the door will be in the closed position, latching means arranged adjacent said rail and adapted to engage and retain said carriage when said door is opened, a time delay mechanism including a movable arm, said arm engaging said carriage upon movement of said carriage to said predetermined position whereby to energize said time delay mechanism, holdin means effective to retain said arm in the energized position, means to release said arm from said holding means whereby said arm is moved b said time delay mech- 6 anism to unlatch said latching means after a predetermined time interval.

3. A mechanism for dual doors in a building comprising a rail positioned perpendicular to the plane of the closed doors, a carriage slidably mounted on said roll, arms interconnecting said carriage and said doors, a spring connected between a fixed point and said carriage biasing said doors toward a closed position, latching means arranged adjacent said rail and adapted to engage and retain said carriage when said doors are opened, manual means to unlatch said latching means to permit said spring to move said carriage and said doors to the closed position without delay, a time delay mechanism including a movable arm, said arm engaging said carriage upon movement of said carriage to the closed position whereby to energize said time delay mechanism, holding means effective to retain said arm in the energized position, means to release said arm from said holding means whereby said arm is moved by said time delay mechanism to unlatch said latching means after a predetermined time interval.

4. A mechanism for dual doors in a building comprising a rail positioned perpendicular to the plane of the closed doors, a carriage slidably mounted on said rail, arms interconnecting said carriage and said doors, a spring connected between a fixed point and said carriage biasing said carriage and said doors toward a closed position, latching means arranged adjacent said rail and adapted to engage and retain said carriage when said doors are opened, manual means to unlatch said latching means to permit said spring to move said carriage and said doors to the closed position without delay, a time delay mechanism including a movable arm, said arm engaging said carriage upon movement of said carriage to the closed position after each time said time delay mechanism operates whereby to energize said time delay mechanism, holding means effective to retain said arm in the energized position, means to release said arm from said holding means whereby said arm is moved by said time delay mechanism to unlatch said latching means after a predetermined time interval.

NELSON J. GUIMONT.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 829,365 Bundy Aug. 21, 1906 988,265 Hart Mar. 28, 1911 1,237,764 Ely Aug. 21, 1917 1,301,736 Pierce Apr. 22, 1919 1,674,597 Johnston June 19, 1928 1,886,999 Wilson Nov. 8, 1932 1,900,901 Bagley Mar. 14, 1933 1,946,577 Fazendin Feb. 13, 1934 2,127,376 Purdy Aug. 16, 1938 

